With the Sonnet M.2 4x4 PCIe card installed in your Mac Pro® tower; Windows® PC desktop or server; or Thunderbolt™ to PCIe card expansion system with an available x16 PCIe slot, you can use it for instant-access media storage or as a high-performance scratch disk. Mac® users can even install macOS® on one SSD to create an incredibly fast boot drive.(2) However you use it, this card’s performance is impressive.

Performance Oriented

Sonnet’s M.2 4x4 PCIe card is a full-height, full-length PCIe 3.0 card with a 16-lane (x16) interface. Featuring a unique Sonnet-designed x16 PCIe bridge, the card devotes four lanes of PCIe 3.0 bandwidth to each SSD you install. When installed in a Windows PC’s PCIe 3.0 slot with four SSDs formatted in a RAID 0 configuration, the card is capable of 8,500 MB/s transfers. Aggregate transfer speeds from four non-RAIDed SSDs of up to 12,000 MB/s are possible!

Thunderbolt Port? Connect Four Ssds Through One Cable

Got a Thunderbolt connection, but no PCIe card slot? Sonnet’s M.2 4x4 PCIe card is ideal for use in one of our Echo™ Express III-D, III-R, or xMac™ Thunderbolt to PCIe card expansion systems—the combo enables you to add up to four SSDs to any Mac with Thunderbolt 2 or Thunderbolt 3 ports, or Windows PC with Thunderbolt 3 ports.(5)

Although thin Mac®, Windows®, and Linux® computers with Thunderbolt™ 3 ports offer processing power to spare, for many users (such as pros in the creative fields) onboard processing power alone is not enough. Sonnet's Echo™ Express SE IIIe is a compact, desktop Thunderbolt™ 3 to PCIe card expansion system that enables you to connect three professional PCIe cards at the same time to any computer with Thunderbolt 3 ports.

The Thunderbolt 3 Connection

This compact desktop expansion system supports three professional PCIe cards (video capture; audio DSP; 6Gb or 12Gb SAS or SATA host bus adapter; 10Gb, 25Gb, or40Gb Ethernet; or RAID controller; etc.) and connects them to your computer through a single Thunderbolt 3 cable.

Some specialty cards, such as RME's HDSPe MADI FX, Blackmagic Design's DeckLink 4K Extreme, and the Lynx AES16e 50, include a daughter card that mates with and provides additional external connections to the main card.

Power to Spare

Echo Express SE IIIe includes an auxiliary PCIe power connector, enabling you to install a card requiring extra power, such as the AJA® Kona® 5 or Blackmagic DeckLink 4K Extreme 12G, and Bluefish444's Epoch and KRONOS SDI cards.

Thunderbolt 3 Cable. ThunderLok 3.

Sonnet includes a 0.7-meter Thunderbolt 3 (40Gbps) cable that, unlike some other cables, transfers data at Thunderbolt 3's full 2750 MB/s bandwidth, and supports up to 100W of Power Delivery (PD). Sonnet also provides a ThunderLok 3 Thunderbolt connector retainer clip that prevents accidental cable disconnections-just slide it over one end of the cable, and then plug in the connector and secure it to the chassis by turning a thumbscrew. Because of its unique design, ThunderLok remains on the cable so it won't get lost when not in use.

Fastest External Interface Available

Echo Express SE IIIe features a 40Gbps Thunderbolt 3 interface, which offers double the PCIe bandwidth and connectivity of Thunderbolt 2, and yields up to 2750 MB/s of bandwidth, enabling it to support 4K video capture and processing cards at high frame rates, and 16Gb FC cards and dual-port 10GbE cards at full performance.

Thunderbolt 3 -The USB C That Does It All

Echo Express SE IIIe includes two Thunderbolt 3 ports; the first connects it to your computer, while the second supports daisy chaining of up to five additional Thunderbolt peripheral devices to a single port on your computer. The SE III also includes 10Gbps USB 3.1 Gen 2 support, meaning you can connect a USB device to the second port using the proper cable or adapter. For connected peripherals requiring extra power, 15 watts is provided to connected bus-powered devices. With the ability to handle multiple demanding, high performance PCIe cards, support for connecting two 4K displays @ 60Hz or one 5K display @ 60Hz, and support for a vast array of Thunderbolt and USB devices, Thunderbolt 3 is a leap forward in every way.

Shopping for a new computer? Small and thin is in—the latest ultra-light notebooks, small form factor, and all-in-one desktops are slender marvels of engineering. But, thinness comes with a cost—there’s nowhere to install PCIe cards that provide additional connectivity and processing capabilities beyond a computer’s standard ports. Thin Mac® and Windows®(1) computers with Thunderbolt™ 3 ports still offer tremendous processing power, but for many, such as pros in the creative fields, onboard processing power alone is not enough. Fortunately, you don’t have to limit your choices to desktop workstations—think external. Sonnet’s Echo Express SEL - Thunderbolt 3 Edition enables you to connect a single low-profile PCIe card outside of the computer. Through its x8 PCIe 3.0 slot, this little Thunderbolt 3-to-PCIe card expansion chassis supports many Thunderbolt-compatible 16Gb and 8Gb Fibre Channel, 40Gb and 10 Gigabit Ethernet, video capture and processing, SAS and SATA host bus adapters, and RAID controller cards.

The Echo Express SEL - Thunderbolt 3 Edition features 40Gbps Thunderbolt 3, which offers double the speed and connectivity of Thunderbolt 2, and yields up to 2750 MB/s of PCIe bandwidth, enabling it to support 4K video capture and processing cards at high frame rates, and 16Gb FC cards and dual-port 10GbE cards at full performance(2)(3). With the ability to handle the most demanding, highest performance PCIe cards, support for connecting two 4K displays @ 60Hz or one 5K display @ 60Hz(4), and support for a vast array of Thunderbolt(5) and USB(6) peripheral devices, Thunderbolt 3 is a leap forward in every way.

Small Package, Full Performance

Measuring just 4 inches wide by 8.4 inches long by 2.8 inches tall, the Echo Express SEL - Thunderbolt 3 Edition is ideal for use in circumstances where connecting a single low-profile PCIe card is required. Many of the most popular Thunderbolt-compatible high-speed networking and storage controller cards are a perfect fit, and even the BlueFish 444 Epoch 4K Neutron video card can be accommodated.

Thunderbolt 3 — The Usb C That Does It All

The Echo Express SEL - Thunderbolt 3 Edition includes two Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports; the first connects it to your computer, while the second supports daisy chaining of up to five additional Thunderbolt peripheral devices to a single port on your computer. The SEL includes 10Gbps USB 3.1 Gen 2 support, meaning you can connect a USB device to the second port using the proper cable or adapter. The SEL also provides full support for connecting two 4K displays @ 60Hz or one 5K display @ 60Hz(4). For connected devices requiring extra power, 15 watts is provided to connected bus-powered devices(7).

Connect computer to one port on the Echo Express SEL – Thunderbolt 3 Edition and daisy chain up to 5 additional Thunderbolt devices (plus two 4K monitors, one 5K display, or one USB 3.0 device)

Smart Design, Inside And Out

Constructed of rugged and lightweight aluminum, the outer shell of the Echo Express SEL - Thunderbolt 3 Edition securely protects the installed PCIe card. The card is protected inside, too—the Echo SEL employs a variable-speed, temperature-controlled fan to ensure the card and chassis’ components remain reliably cool. The fan automatically speeds up as necessary to cool the installed card when it’s hot, and slows down when it’s cool. Since Echo Express products automatically power on and off with your computer, there is no power switch on the chassis, ensuring you don’t waste energy by forgetting to turn it off.

Quiet, Please

The Echo Express SEL - Thunderbolt 3 Edition was designed to be ultra-quiet so that it can be comfortably used in noise-sensitive environments. The airflow path within the chassis has been specially designed to enable the fan to quietly and efficiently cool the installed card at all times, even during peak operation.

Do you have a card in mind but aren’t sure it’s compatible? We’ve worked closely with PCIe card manufacturers to provide a list of compatible cards on our supporting PCIe Card Thunderbolt Compatibility Chart. The chart provides a list of cards that have been tested to be recognized over a Thunderbolt connection and compatible with Thunderbolt technology requirements.

Thunderbolt 3 (40Gbps) Cable And Thunderlok 3 Included

Sonnet includes a 0.5-meter Thunderbolt 3 cable to connect the Echo Express SEL - Thunderbolt 3 Edition to your computer, and a Sonnet ThunderLok 3 Thunderbolt connector retainer clip(8) to secure the cable to the Echo chassis. Accidental cable disconnect can lead to data loss. Sonnet’s ThunderLok 3 secures the Thunderbolt cable to the Echo chassis, and is easy to install and use—just slide it over one end of the cable, and then plug in the connector and secure it to the chassis by turning a thumbscrew. Because of its unique design, ThunderLok does not attach to the connector, but remains on the cable so it won’t get lost when not in use.